Best portable mini Bluetooth speakers

As dozens of tiny wireless speakers flood the market, here's a look at CNET's current top picks for mini Bluetooth speakers that you can take with you wherever you go.

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Best portable mini Bluetooth speakers

The market for Bluetooth speakers has exploded in the past few years, and with good reason: quality has increased and prices have dropped. Every model can stream music from nearly any smartphone or tablet, many of them double as speakerphones, too.

We at CNET have been reviewing them at a steady clip, and we've rounded up more than two dozen of our favorite models, focusing on small and lightweight units that are best suited to travel.

Editors' Rating

User Rating

JBL Charge

The Flip's slightly bigger brother offers a touch better sound, but significantly better battery life (and the ability to charge your other gadgets) for a bit more: $150 USD. (UK and Australia prices are far closer to that of the Flip: £120 and AU$170.)

Editors' Rating

JBL Pulse

A lot of these small Bluetooth speakers sound fairly similar, but the JBL Pulse manages to distinguish itself with a built-in light show that's fairly mesmerizing. Snag it for $200 USD, £170, or (!) AU$300.

Logitech X300

Logitech's X300, which can be stood up vertically or sat down horizontally (as pictured), is a solid at $70 USD (£60, AU$80), sounding as good or better than many competing speakers in the $100 USD price range.

Editors' Rating

Soundmatters FoxL DASH 7

The DASH 7 is a close cousin to Jawbone's Mini Jambox, which licenses some of Soundmatters' micro speaker technology. We like it, but it is pricier than the Mini Jambox -- $200 USD or £250. (Not available in Australia.)

Editors' Rating

Divoom Voombox Travel

Divoom's Voombox Travel is a rugged donut-sized speaker that plays very loud for its size and retails for an affordable $50 USD (£35 in the UK, not available in Australia). While it distorts at times, it's still one of the stronger speakers in its size class.

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JBL Clip

The $50 USD JBL Clip is the successor to JBL's Micro Wireless Bluetooth speaker. It has a couple of small changes, including a carabiner-style clip at
the top (instead of a closed loop), and it also sports speakerphone
capabilities. (Residents of the UK and Australia should check out the very similar JBL Micro or Micro II, which retails for £35 or AU$60.)

Editors' Rating

Boom Swimmer

The Boom Swimmer ($60 USD, £50, AU$79) is a small waterproof wireless speaker that has a bendable tail that allows you to hook the speaker onto anything you want. It also comes with a suction cup, so you can attach it to the wall -- or glass -- in your shower. It offers better sound than its small size would indicate, but it gets on the list for its flexible, bathroom friendly design. Available in multiple color options.

Logitech UE Mini Boom

Logitech's UE Mobile Boombox has been renamed the UE Mini Boom. At just under $100 USD (£80, AU$95), it offers good built quality and decent sound for its size. And now you can pair two Mini Booms together for stereo sound via the free UE app.

Editors' Rating

Cambridge SoundWorks Oontz Curve

The Curve, Cambridge SoundWorks' newest addition to the Oontz family, is the company's smallest speaker. It has a shiny metallic finish, comes in a few different colors, and its key selling point is its price tag: $30 USD. (Not available in the UK or Australia.)

Editors' Rating

User Rating

Beats Pill

The Beats Pill has a lot to like about it if you can overlook its somewhat inflated price tag: $200 USD, £169, and AU$247.

Editors' note: Beats updated the speaker at the end of 2013, adding a few features without changing its design. When we get a review sample, we'll update our review. (The review below is for the early edition of the Pill.)

A doughnut-size Bluetooth speaker that's pretty tasty

The X100 is one of the better micro wireless speakers out there. While its sound is decent for its class, ultimately you'd probably want to pick it over its competitors because you like its design (I do) and maybe because it costs slightly less.